


wherever you are is my home

by voguewylies



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Happy Ending, rina endgame!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-15 23:09:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29815812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/voguewylies/pseuds/voguewylies
Summary: “I just-I thought you didn’t do dates.”“I didn’t. Things change, Ricky. You should know that.”
Relationships: Ashlyn Caswell & E.J. Caswell & Gina Porter, Big Red & Ricky Bowen (HSMTMTS), Ricky Bowen & Gina Porter, Ricky Bowen/Gina Porter, Ricky Bowen/Nini Salazar-Roberts
Comments: 4
Kudos: 43





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

> @wizrdwheezes on twitter!

_1 month earlier_

“I love you!”

Gina had been on her way to congratulate Ricky for his performance of _Breaking Free,_ but stops outside of the dressing room as soon as she hears those words. She’s confused, she knows she isn’t the one he’s talking to. Who else would he be saying those words to?

She had been hoping to finally get a chance to say goodbye to him, the proper way this time. She wanted to apologize for not responding to his texts and promise him that she’d do her absolute best to stay in touch. She wanted to praise him for his very Troy-esque performance and say, _"You were amazing!"_ She wanted him to pick her up and spin her around, just like he did the first time she uttered those words.

Gina soon finds out how wrong she is. Ricky continues to go on about ukuleles and clouds and did he just say something about throw-up?

Then she hears Nini say something about her shoes, making Gina freeze. _He’s declaring his love for Nini?_ Gina thought he had been getting over her. Based on what she had heard from Red, he hadn’t thought about Nini since...homecoming, actually. 

Throughout Ricky and Gina’s time as friends, she had gotten some intel from Red about the whole “ _Instagram-I-love-you”_ fiasco. From what she had gathered during her time as a wonderstudy and as Ricky’s friend, he had been finally getting over Nini. Now that she thinks about it, she had never heard Nini’s name mentioned once in a single conversation. 

But now, here Gina was, sitting on the floor outside of the dressing room, with tears threatening to flow from her eyes, listening to her friend _, more-than-a-friend? crush? whatever._ Listening to her Ricky declare his love for another girl.

_No_ , Gina thinks, _I’m not gonna let myself have a pity party on the dirty floors of a highschool._ She gets up from her spot on the floor and wipes her face clean of tears. _Besides, I have to be on a plane to D.C. in less than 12 hours. I can cry when I’m dead._ She walks off to go and find EJ to beg him for a ride back to her hotel, not really wanting to take the chance of being alone in an Uber at 10 PM. On her journey to locate EJ, she bumps into a different, red-headed Caswell.

Said red-headed Caswell then says five words that change Gina’s life forever.

“Why don’t you stay forever?”


	2. the back to school bash

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ashlyn throws a party. ricky and nini have a conversation. ej and gina love karaoke.

The transition from Gina Porter to Gina Porter-semi-permanent-Caswell went by quickly. 

After the play, EJ had given Gina a ride back to the Caswell’s instead of her hotel. When the cast party was over, Ashlyn’s mom had informed Gina that she had her mom’s seal of approval to stay in SLC.

Things went by in a blur after that. Gina’s mom had come to Salt Lake before Christmas, along with Gina’s things. Gina and her mom then flew back to D.C. for the holidays. 

After spending Christmas in D.C., Gina took another flight back to SLC for New Years'. By the time she had returned to the Caswell household, all of Gina’s things had been moved into her new bedroom (courtesy of Ashlyn), and she was officially a Salt Lake City resident once again.

In the days leading up to Gina’s return to East High, Gina, Ashlyn, and EJ became three peas in a pod. EJ, Gina learned, liked to spend a lot of time at Ashlyn’s house. With his parents out of town a lot, he usually divided his time between them and his water-polo buddies. She grew to appreciate the dark-haired senior, not just because he was the only one out of the three who could drive, but he made a big effort in making Gina feel at home. 

The trio spent a lot of their time at Sliced, Big Red’s family’s pizza place, due to the new relationship between Big Red and Ashlyn. Ricky was spending all of his time with Nini, now that they were back together, so they didn’t see a lot of him at Sliced. Gina wasn’t avoiding him, not really, but they weren’t joined at the hip anymore and Gina was thankful for that. She didn’t feel like spending her free time watching Ricky make googly eyes at Nini. As a result of their lack of interaction, Gina didn’t even know if Ricky was aware that she was in town and would be attending East High again.

As for the new “sisters”, Gina and Ashlyn spent a lot of time showing each other new things, like their favorite movies, favorite songs, and what they liked to do in their free time. This led to Ashlyn talking Gina’s ear off about her new hobby, party-hosting. Which was more of a curse than a blessing, according to Gina. 

After Ashlyn’s semi-successful Thanksgiving bash and a very successful cast party, she took it upon herself to throw another party, a back-to-school-for-second-semester bash. This meant that all of the theater kids would be invited, including Ricky and Nini, who according to Red were still in their honeymoon phase. _Does it count as a honeymoon phase if it’s their second time?_

Another party also meant that all of the theater kids would be finding out that Gina was staying, for good.

* * *

About twenty minutes after the back-to-school-for-second-semester-party begins, Ricky and Nini arrive. After sharing greetings with a few people, they set up camp in the kitchen. Gina, who had just finished getting ready, descends from the stairs.

Upon hearing exclamations of surprise from the others (mainly Carlos), Nini looks up, “Woah, is that Gina? Did you know she was back?” she says, nudging Ricky’s side.

“Gina?” Ricky looks up and sees said girl, who’s getting a bone-crushing hug from Carlos, and replies, “Uh, yeah, Red mentioned it I think.”

“Well, c’mon! Let’s say hi!”

Ricky’s “Wait, Neens!” was left unheard as she dragged her boyfriend to where Gina was standing. 

“Gina! You’re back! Ahhh! Why didn’t you tell anyone?” greets Nini, bringing Gina in for a hug.

“Oh, well, it all just happened so fast, you know? And I wanted it to be a surprise! So, uh, surprise?” Gina says, doing her best to avoid eye contact with Ricky. 

“Well, I am so glad you’re back. We’re gonna have so much fun now that you’re here for good! Oh, there’s this ice cream place we _have_ to go to! I didn’t get to show you before, because...well you know.” rambles Nini, before drifting off at the end.

“Don’t even worry about it, Neens. I promise it’s water under the bridge.” Gina assures.

There’s a bit of silence before Nini nudges Ricky’s side again, signaling for him to say something. He settles for a simple, “Hey”, which earns a wave from Gina.

An excited EJ then comes running up to the group, “Hey, Gigi, it’s our turn for karaoke! I already put “ _I Don’t Dance''_ on the queue!”

“Oh yay! Bye guys!” 

Ricky watches as EJ drags Gina away to the living room and mouths, _“Gigi?”_

Throughout the night, Ricky’s eyes don’t seem to leave Gina’s figure. Even as he’s doing a duet of _This Is Me_ from Camp Rock with Nini, his eyes always seem to be looking for her in the group. It’s as if he’s expecting her to suddenly disappear and then he’ll wake up and realize it was just a dream all along.

As he stares at Gina, he can’t help but be a little upset with her. Why wouldn’t she tell him that she was back in Salt Lake for good? He thought they were friends, he should’ve heard the news from Gina herself. 

_Oh please, you two were always more-than-friends!_ Ricky’s brain supplies.

He decides to save that thought for later.

As Nini’s singing the last note in _This Is Me_ , Ricky's eyes watch as Gina walks over to the kitchen, alone. He quickly makes up an excuse about having to go to the restroom and follows Gina.

Gina, who’s serving herself another glass of lemonade, gets startled by his sudden, “Hey.”

“Hi,” she replies.

“So, you’re back.”

Before taking a sip of her drink, a quiet “Yup” escapes her lips.

An awkward silence follows, which confuses Ricky. They had always been able to talk to each other about everything. He isn’t able to remember a silence this long in their entire friendship. 

On the other hand, Gina’s mind is reeling. She’s accepted that she _~~is in love with~~ _has a crush on Ricky Bowen and he has a girlfriend, she’s accepted it. However, she just isn’t able to help the words that come out of her mouth.

“So, you and Nini?” she says, surprising herself.

“Me and Nini?”

“I heard a big speech was delivered opening night.”

“Oh.” But before he can go any further their conversation is interrupted, thankfully. A ticked-off Ashlyn appears, who’s been looking for Gina for their karaoke duet of _Can I Have This Dance._

* * *

Soon the party’s long over and Ricky’s dropping Nini off, his brain filled with thoughts of Gina. He shakes his head, says a mental _“Quit it!”_ to his brain, and glances over at Nini. You know, his _girlfriend._ Then, as if his brain is trying to prove him wrong, he remembers a conversation he had with one of Nini’s moms before the party.

\--

_“Hey, Ricky! Come on in, Nini’s just finishing up!” She greets as she lets him into the house, “Looking forward to the party?”_

_“Uh, yeah. Should be fun.”_

_“Oh, a part of me wishes I could go with you. I wanna get as much time as I can with Nini before she leaves.” Nini’s mom confesses._

_“Before she leaves? Where’s Nini going?” Ricky asks, a look of confusion on his face._

_Sudden regret fills her face, “Oh, uh, I think she should be the one to tell you, dear. You shouldn’t hear this from me.” She pauses as Nini’s footsteps thud from the staircase._

_“Ready to go?” Nini asks, coming down the final steps to the living room._

_“Yeah, yeah, let’s go,” Ricky replies, grabbing his keys._

_“You two have fun!”_

\--

He stops a few houses away from Nini’s and looks over at her. Nini, who's confused as to why Ricky stopped so suddenly, turns and sees the troubled look on his face. Her question follows, “Hey, are you okay? What’s wrong?”

He decides to just ask plain and simple, so there’s no miscommunication, “Are you leaving?”

“L-leaving?” Nini laughs nervously, “What are you talking about?”

“Nini, please don’t lie to me. We said we’d communicate with each other this time around.” Ricky pleads, turning in his seat to face Nini.

“What?” 

“Your mom said she wanted to spend as much time with you as she could before you leave. Where are you going?” There’s a hopeful look in his eyes, practically begging for good news.

Nini’s eyes are shiny with tears, she looks down at her hands, then takes a deep breath, “Um, okay, you remember that lady with the clipboard from the show?” Her question earns a nod from Ricky.

“She offered me a spot at the Youth Actors Conservatory. Uh, it’s an acting school.” she pauses, “In Denver.”


	3. auditions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a new boy enters the picture. auditions are held. ricky reminisces on his relationship.

About two weeks after Ricky and Nini’s conversation in the car, Nini departs for Denver and officially leaves East High. 

Ricky was happy for Nini, she was going to be attending a prestigious school and would be around people who were like her. She was going to be learning all the tips and tricks and behind-the-scenes stuff of being an actress. _And if they taught her how to act...well, a win-win for everyone!_

In the two weeks before Nini left, they had decided to break up. Ricky and Nini both realized that their relationship was easier if the two were friends. Nini didn’t want to be in another state “tied down” to Salt Lake as she put it, she wanted a fresh start at YAC. 

As for Ricky, he had a weight lifted off his shoulders. As Nini’s boyfriend, he always felt like he had to be a different person in order to keep up with her. Being with Nini was almost like a chore, like it was something he was obligated to do. But as friends, he could be his regular Ricky-self, he didn’t have to pretend to like the musicals she watched or try to be as romantic as possible at all times.

Ricky’s thoughts then drift to Gina. (They’ve been doing that a lot.) 

When he first got back together with Nini, he began catching himself comparing his relationship with Nini to his relationship with Gina. It didn’t make sense to him, Gina was just his friend. 

_More-than-friends!_ his brain reminded, which earned an eye roll from Ricky. 

Gina was his _friend_ and Nini was his girlfriend, it didn’t really make sense to compare his relationship with the two, yet he did anyway. He remembered how free he felt with Gina, there was never any reason for him to be anyone but himself with her, it wasn’t like that with Nini. Gina just understood him in ways that Nini would never have been able to.

Speaking of Gina, he wonders how she reacted to the news. He remembers that Nini and Gina weren’t exactly the best of friends and had only just gotten friendly with each other. He hopes that Gina’s happy for her, maybe happy for herself as well, because now there’s one less person competing for a lead role.

Ricky knows how important that is for Gina, as she had told him all about her mom. How her job required them to move around, how big of a stickler she was for perfection from Gina, and how she loved her mom more than anything, despite her strict nature. He’s glad Gina had settled in nicely at the Caswells, he knows how tough change can be, especially one that big.

A sudden snap breaks Ricky out of his thoughts. He turns his head to see Red looking at him with a questioning look on his face.

“Dude, you okay?” Red waves his hands in front of Ricky’s face. “Should I take you to the nurse?” he asks.

“I don’t need the nurse.” Ricky slaps Red’s hand away. “I’m good.”

“Yeah? You sure about that? Cause you just spent about...5 minutes staring at Gina.” He counters, picking up a french fry and popping it into his mouth.

“I was not.” 

“You were, I’m pretty sure you almost started drooling.” A beat of silence as Red takes a sip of his milk. “What’s up with you, dude?”

Ricky takes a deep breath and replies, “I don’t know, I think I miss her.”

“You think you miss her?” the red-head chuckles.

“Alright, fine” Ricky’s hands go up in surrender, “I miss her.”

“How can you miss her? She's right there, Ricky. Like two tables away.” Red’s hand gesturing towards Gina’s general direction.

A sigh, “You know what I mean, Red. It's not the same.”

“Okay, well let’s see. You’ve said maybe 15 words to each other since she’s been back, you were with Nini like 99% of the time, and she leaves the room almost immediately after you walk in. Hmm, I wonder why things aren’t the same.” Red recalls, counting each point on his hand.

Ricky shakes his head in disbelief, “Seriously, Red?”

“Sorry, dude. I think Ashlyn’s sarcasm might be rubbing off on me.” Red pauses as he pats Ricky’s back, “But, really, you guys were joined at the hip not even 2 months ago. What’s changed?”

“I don’t know.” Ricky runs his hands through his hair and then down his face, “I mean, she left, right? The day after tech rehearsal. Then she came back opening night. We talked for a bit. I got back together with Nini. We found out she’s staying...and now she won’t even look at me.”

The boys turn their heads to look over at Gina’s table. EJ’s animatedly telling a story to Ashlyn and Gina, who are giggling at him. As EJ continues to talk, a tall brunette boy walks over, sporting an East High letterman. The boy high-fives EJ, then sits in the empty seat beside Gina, putting his arm around her.

Ricky’s eyes widen as the boy leans over and gives Gina a light kiss on the cheek, “Okay, did you just see that? What just happened? What was that? _Who_ is that?”

“You done? Run out of questions yet?” Red asks, gives Ricky a moment to relax, and replies “That’s Nate.”

“Nate?”

“He’s one of EJ’s water-polo buddies, I’ve seen him when they hang out at Sliced, he’s also…” Red trails off.

“What, Red? Who is he?” asks Ricky, a look of confusion on his face. 

“Gina’s boyfriend.”

* * *

After a little freak-out from Ricky and a successful breathing exercise from Red, the bell rings, signaling the end of the lunch period.

Red and Ricky parted ways almost immediately. Seeing a confused Ricky, Red reminded him, _“I have Mrs. Gonzalez after lunch. You know how she hates me?” A “yeah” from Ricky. “Well, I’ve decided that this semester that I’m gonna make her like me. She’s the only teacher in the entire high school who hates me. I’m gonna need her brownie points if I’m gonna pass Science.” Red begins walking away, “Which means I have to be early, so see you later! Love you!”_

Ricky leaves the cafeteria and goes on his way to English class, thinking about Gina and Nate. _God, what a douchey name. I bet he uses Axe._ _Gina has an Axe-wearing boyfriend._

Boyfriend. Gina’s boyfriend. Ricky exhales, he should be happy for her, right? _She’s always wanted a boyfriend, someone to be around,_ he remembers, _she loves love_. Ricky pauses, the saying triggering a memory in his brain.

\--

_Ricky and Gina are sitting in the Porter living room, pillows and blankets piled high, snacks surrounding them. They’re on the floor leaning against the couch, sitting close to each other, almost too close for people who are “just friends.”_

_“So, Genevieve, what movie have you picked out for us this week?”_

_It had been Gina’s idea to institute weekly movie nights._

_She never had many friends, but from what she’s watched on TV and in movies, movie night was a staple in friendships. Convincing Ricky to do movie night with her wasn’t hard, as the boy was a sucker for anything that involved popcorn._

_She was glad to be doing movie nights with Ricky, he was Gina’s first real friend. (If you don’t count Mr.Snuggles, which Gina does not.) They were comfortable with each other and Gina had never had someone that she could be 100% Gina around, so it was only natural that her first “friend-thing” be with Ricky._

_They had decided to switch-off each week for who gets to pick the movie. This week it was Gina’s turn._

_“I have chosen...drumroll please!”_

_Ricky pats his hands on his legs, the anticipation for Gina’s movie choice growing._

_“To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before!” A grin on Gina’s face following. Her expression almost makes Ricky feel bad for what he says next, almost._

_“Really? A romance movie? Vieve, seriously?”_

_“What? It’s really good! I promise it won’t even feel like we’re watching a romance movie! Besides, romance movies are the best! They’re so...romantic!”_

_“Yeah, I figured.” A chuckle from Ricky’s mouth as Gina’s puppy eyes kick in, “Alright, alright, play it!_

_“Yes!”_

_As Lara Jean and Peter are entering the house-party, Gina pipes up, “Oh, aren’t they the cutest?” she sighs, staring at the screen, “Don’t you just love love?”_

_Ricky doesn’t reply for a few seconds, his attention hasn’t been on the movie for about 3 minutes. His gaze is directed at Gina as she watches Peter and Gen talk in the bathroom. Her eyes haven’t moved from the screen the entire time, “She gets really into these types of movies, huh? That’s so adorable.” he thinks._

_He realizes that he hadn’t answered Gina’s question, “Yeah, sure, Vieve.” He looks back at the screen and exclaims, “Did she just take Lara Jean’s scrunchie?”_

_\--_

Ricky shakes his head out of his thoughts and looks up to see a head of curly hair attached to a body rifling through a locker, _Gina._ He takes a deep breath, shakes his nerves out of his hands, and walks up to Gina’s locker, “Hey...Gina.”

She’s silent for a second, debating on whether to not ignore his existence at the moment. After a bit of internal argument, Gina chooses to give the boy a bit of mercy. She glances at him and says “Hi.” _God, please don’t say anything stupid to make me regret that_ , she thinks.

“I heard you’re, uh, dating someone.“ _Too late, I regret it._

“Okay.” she closes her locker and faces him, “Anything else?”

“I just-I thought you didn’t do dates.”

“I didn’t. Things change, Ricky. You should know that.” Gina replies, picking up her backpack from the ground and setting her books inside. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asks.

“Nothing.” she shakes her head, avoiding eye contact. The warning bell rings, interrupting their conversation. “Look, I gotta go. Math. See you at auditions.” she walks away from Ricky with Ashlyn, who had been waiting a few feet away. 

* * *

Ricky didn’t really want to be in the theater at the moment. He wasn’t sure how to interpret Gina’s behavior with him, but he decided that if he was going to get their relationship back to the way it used to be, joining theater for the second semester was a good start.

If he’s being honest, the theater was probably the only place he felt at home. He’d never admit it, but he had greatly enjoyed being a theater kid, even if it was only to sabotage Nini and EJ’s relationship.

He also suspected that he was expected to be there, you know, ex-Troy Bolton and all.

As auditions begin, Ricky looks around the theater. Scanning the seats, Ricky finds the head of curly hair that’s so familiar to him, sitting in a Caswell sandwich. He focuses on Gina, debating whether joining theater to repair their relationship was the best idea. _Yes, of course, it is_. He decides.

He hears Miss Jenn looks over at the sign-up sheet and calls out, “Okay...Ricky? Ricky Bowen? You’re up.”

Hesitating a bit, he glances at Miss Jenn and back at Gina and makes a sudden decision. 

Ricky grabs his guitar and gets up from his seat in the theater, walking up the steps to the stage. There are murmurs coming from the seats, _“A guitar, again?” “Who let this guy in?” “Is he gonna sing another Instagram song?” “Hey, Troy Bolton!”_ He blocks out the comments, adjusts his guitar, and waits for Miss Jenn’s signal to begin.

Then, as if his audacity couldn’t get any higher, the opening chords for _When There Was Me and You_ begin.

As he’s singing, he looks out into the audience, his gaze directed at Gina. Gina can feel Ricky’s eyes trying to get a reaction out of her, which causes Gina to return his stare. There’s a neutral expression on her face, like if she can’t decide whether to cry or punch a certain Bowen in the face. Ricky knows she remembers the moment attached to the song, because of course she does, it was such a pivotal moment in their relationship. 

They had just gone from acquaintances to friends and confidants. Gina remembers this moment, the way the butterflies in her stomach would not quit moving, and the way her heart was practically beating out of her chest. Ricky had been her first friend and now he was serenading her, with a song about Gabriella’s heartbreak, a thought Gina ignores. If you were to ask Gina about it, she’d label this moment, “the moment my feelings for Ricky Bowen skyrocketed.”

Once the song is on its final notes, Ricky tears his stare away from Gina and focuses on Miss Jenn. In the distance, Ashlyn can be heard whispering to Gina, “ _What was that about?”_ He plays the final chords and waits for her feedback. Miss Jenn takes a breath and speaks up, “That was great, Ricky. But you do know that we’re doing _Beauty and the Beast_ , right? Not _High School Musical 2_. Maybe try something from this musical?”

After a quick 10 minute break, so Miss Jenn can cast the roles, she calls everyone back into the theater and gestures for everyone to quiet down.

“Okay, everyone, in my hands I have the cast list for our production of _Beauty and the Beast_! The cast is as follows: EJ Caswell, The Beast. Kourtney Greene, Belle. Ashlyn Caswell, Mrs. Potts. Ricky Bowen, Lumiere. Seb Matthew-Smith, Cogsworth. Tony Martinez, Chip.” she announces and continues listing others like Gaston, LeFou, and Maurice. As she’s finishing up, she calls out, “Okay that’s it! The rehearsal schedule will be sent out soon! Have a good weekend!”

Ashlyn pats Gina on the shoulder, “I’m sorry Gina. Maybe Miss Jenn has a good reason for not casting you? Uh, your cheer schedule, that must be it!”

“No...I can’t be. I wrote down that I was willing to work around it. I’m gonna go ask Carlos.” Gina replies with a shake of her head.

She follows Carlos out of the theater and calls out to him, “Hey, Carlos! Wait up!”

“Hi! Oh, congrats, Gina!” he replies, causing a “Congrats?” to leave Gina’s mouth.

“Congrats? You know, for getting cast?” 

“I got cast?” she exclaims.

A confused “Yeah…?” comes from Carlos.

“I’ve gotta go! Thanks, Carlos!” Gina runs back to the theater, where Miss Jenn is cleaning up. “Uh, Miss Jenn?”

“Gina! Your audition was amazing! Congrats on getting cast! Although, I think you can thank me for that.” she laughs.

“Thanks.” Gina hesitantly responds, “Uh, Miss Jenn, you didn’t actually read my name out, so I don’t know what part I’m playing.”

“Oh, sorry! Let me look at the list. Umm...found it!” Miss Jenn pauses as she reads from her notebook. 

“Gina Porter, Plumette.”


	4. rehearsal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ricky has a revelation. gina gets confused. ej can't dance.

After finding out that she was cast as Plumette, Gina leaves the theater to find EJ and Ashlyn waiting in EJ’s truck. A bit of debating later on where to eat, the Caswell-Porter trio decides to head to Sliced to celebrate EJ getting the lead. (And also Ashlyn and Gina getting cast.) Once they arrive at the pizzeria, Ashlyn and Gina leave to find a booth while EJ orders.

Ashlyn and Gina slide in on one side of the booth, getting comfortable in their seats when Ashlyn nudges Gina in the side, “So, Gi...you gonna tell me what that was all about?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Ash.” Gina replies as she begins fiddling with the cheese shakers.

Brows quirked and suspicions high, Ashlyn says, “Oh please, you could cut the tension in the room with a knife. A machete, actually. Not to mention his eyes were practically staring into your soul,” she snickers.

Gina sighs and lays her head on the table. _Ugh, Ricky that jerk._ _He just had to go and sing that stupid song!_ After a bit of silence, she answers, “I swear it’s nothing. Ricky was just being dumb. I’m pretty sure that’s his default setting.” 

“Mhm, okay.”

“Seriously, Ash. It was nothing.” Gina insists as EJ walks over to the table, pepperoni pizza in hand. 

“What’s nothing?” he asks.

Ashlyn responds for Gina, causing an eye roll from her. “Oh you know, one second we’re arguing about Miss Jenn’s casting ability and the next we’re watching Gina stare down a singing Ricky.”

“Oh,” EJ replies, setting down the food. “That.” He settles down in the booth and passes out plates to the girls, “You know, I’m not all that surprised.”

Gina pauses in the middle of grabbing a slice, “You’re not?”

“No, not really. Obviously, something went down between you two. I mean, one moment you’re helping me get Nini back, the next you’re throwing punch down my shirt. Then, I go looking for you to drive you home and Red tells me Ricky’s already taken you home. And then you guys show up to school on Monday and suddenly you two are best friends. Then you move away and come back and now all you do is give him the death stare.”

While Ashlyn and Gina are letting EJ’s reply sink in, another red-head and brunette duo sit on the other side of the restaurant, having a similar conversation.

“So,” Red begins, setting down a pizza on the table. “You wanna talk about it?”

Ricky looks up at Red, “Not really.” He runs his hands down his face, “Ugh, I can’t believe I did that. How bad was it?” he asks, angrily picking up a slice.

Red, sprinkles some cheese on his pizza and replies, “It certainly was something. You weren’t exactly being subtle, bud.” he takes a bite, “What was up with that, anyway?”

“I just...I don’t know, Red. I saw her sitting there looking like _that_ and then suddenly my hands started strumming and I was singing.” He shakes his head and mutters under his breath, “God, and of course it had to be that song. Bowen luck is the worst.”

Red shrugs, “Well, it seemed to work. If getting cast as Lumiere was your plan.”

“Uh, it wasn’t. You know, not really, but I’m not mad at it. Being Troy was fun last year, so this should be better because now I know what I'm doing. At least I’m not the lead this time, right? What do you think?” Ricky answers, taking a sip of his soda.

“I think you're gonna have to try extra hard these next few weeks to get back on Gina’s good side.”

* * *

Throughout the next few weeks, Ricky and Gina had somewhat of a routine. They’d show up to rehearsal, Ricky would try to talk to Gina, who’d do her best to avoid him. Ricky would get a kicked puppy look on his face, Red would give him a pep-talk and he’d try again. 

Ricky’s logic wasn’t exactly the greatest. In his mind, the singing didn’t work, so talking would _have_ to be better somehow.

The boy had given his best efforts to get at least one word out of Gina, but the girl was adamant about only speaking to him if it was in the script. Luckily for Gina, most of Ricky’s scenes were with Seb and Kourtney, so she didn’t have to put in much work to avoid him.

Whenever Ricky would try to talk to her, she’d give him a blank stare, make a disapproving sound and walk away. One time, she just completely ignored his existence. Literally. Ricky had waved his hands in front of Gina’s face and she didn’t react. He had even tried clapping in front of her face. It was kind of embarrassing. 

After a few weeks of Ricky’s constant efforts to get Gina to talk to him and being shut down each time, he soon gave up. He’d decided that he’d leave Gina alone, he had enough common sense to see that she had no plans on speaking to him anytime soon. Ricky would respect her decision. (Even if he still didn’t know what he’d done to get her this angry with him.)

Gina and Nate were still going strong, they’d just celebrated their first month together. Nate had made a big scene in the cafeteria, bringing Gina a huge chocolate heart. She had even walked into rehearsal holding a big bouquet of flowers. _Another trust-fund kid_ , Ricky suspected.

After the 6-foot teddy bear was delivered to the bomb-shelter, though, that’s when Ricky had begun to get a little jealous. He’d seen the smile on Gina’s face, how her face lit up at the sight of the teddy bear. 

The sight reminded him of the cheesy romance movies she’d made him watch on movie night. How she’d cry every time the couple found their way back to each other or they’d had a dramatic moment in the rain. She’d told Ricky that she wanted to find someone who treated her like she’d put the stars in the sky. 

Nate had treated her as such and so Ricky let Gina go, but it didn’t change the fact that Ricky wished he’d been the cause for the smile on her face. It didn’t change the fact that each time he watched Gina and Nate walk down the hallway, he’d wish he was the one holding Gina’s books in one hand and Gina’s hand in the other.

He began to miss the weekly movie nights with her, it had been her suggestion to begin them, after all.

He missed the way she knew how to make the popcorn extra buttery.

He missed the way she got her own separate bowl of popcorn so she could mix in M&M’s.

He missed the way she would get so happy that she jumped in his arms each time she won a game at the arcade.

He missed the feeling of Gina in his arms after she’d fallen asleep halfway through his pick at movie night.

He missed the eye roll Gina would give him when he made a stupid joke, even though he knew she found them funny.

Most of all, he missed the way Gina would look at him when she thought he wasn’t looking.

Ricky had accepted it, ~~_he had a crush on_~~ was in love with Gina Porter.

Most of the cast and crew had begun to notice the tension between Ricky and Gina and were determined to let the two figure out the problem on their own. They’d made an official-unofficial pact to not get involved unless their situation began to affect their performance in the play. 

“Which won’t happen,” Ashlyn assured, “Gina’s a professional, she played _Annie_ for crying out loud!”

  
  


* * *

  
  


About a month into rehearsals, Miss Jenn being the “director” that she is, had made a few changes to the original script. She had informed the cast and crew that rehearsal for the waltz between EJ and Kourtney would begin. 

Miss Jenn’s change to the script included others in the waltz between Belle and the Beast. Her plan was that EJ and Kourtney would begin the dance and then others would join in. She’d made the arrangement so that Mrs. Potts would waltz with Chip and Lumiere would waltz with Plumette.

Gina hadn’t thought much about it. She was an actress and dancing with Ricky was a part of that, so she decided it wouldn’t be much trouble to dance with Ricky. Besides, she was already an amazing dancer so it would be a piece of cake.

Unfortunately for Gina, though, during the first rehearsal for the waltz, Miss Jenn motioned Gina to the side.

“Gina, honey, can I speak to you for a sec?”

Gina abandoned her spot where she was helping Carlos show EJ the basic steps for a waltz. “What’s up Miss Jenn?”

“Can I ask a favor of you?” Miss Jenn asks.

“Of course, what do you need?”

“Okay, because we’re gonna have you and Ricky included in the waltz, I was wondering if you’d be able to teach him the steps. He doesn’t seem like much of a dancer, and we both know how the bows went last semester.” 

Miss Jenn notices the faint expression of a grimace on Gina’s face and continues, “I’d have Carlos do it, but as you can see, he’s gonna have his hands busy with EJ and Kourtney. I know you two have something going on, but it would be for the benefit of the play. So, please?” 

“How did you...?” Gina responds.

“Oh honey, I’m not blind....and I might have heard a little gossip from Carlos.” she winces, causing Gina to mutter a _“Blabber-mouth!”_

A little internal debate later and Gina is nodding, “Uh, yeah, totally. Don’t worry about it, Miss Jenn. I’ll grab him and take him down to the dance studio.” She assures Miss Jenn and walks back to her spot with EJ. 

“What did she want?” he asks.

Gina turns to look at Miss Jenn, who’s informing Ricky of the plan. “Uh, she wants me to teach Ricky how to waltz.”

“Seriously?” Gina turns back to face EJ, who asks, “Why can’t Carlos do it?”

“Well, he’s busy trying to teach _you_ how to dance, so he’ll have his hands full.” she teases as she pokes him in the chest.

* * *

While Miss Jenn and Carlos are in the theater teaching EJ and Kourtney the steps, Gina is sat waiting in the dance studio for Ricky to show up. 

She had connected her phone to the speakers in the ceiling and was lacing up her sneakers when she heard the door open. Ricky walks in asking “Gina?” to the big room and finds her on the floor, so he sets his bag down on the bench.

She greets him with a “Ricky.” Getting up from the floor, she continues, “Okay, let’s get this over with.” Gina walks over to her phone to click play, while Ricky utters an “Okay…yeah.”

Gina strides back to the middle of the dance floor and stops in front of Ricky. She hesitates for a second while the music begins to play and grabs Ricky’s hands and guides one to her waist. “Alright, so your hands go here…”

“And my hands go here.” she says, placing one of her hands on his shoulders. Adjusting her grip, she continues, “Um, so it’s a basic box step, okay? I’ll show you first and then we’ll practice with me leading, but for the play you’re gonna be leading.”

Ricky mutters a quiet, “Yeah”, as Gina pulls her body away from Ricky. She allows the music to keep playing and shows Ricky the basic steps for the waltz. Once she’s finished, she looks up to make sure he understands what to do and receives a nod as a “Yes.” 

Gina makes her way back to her phone to start the song over. She approaches Ricky again, placing her hand back on his shoulder and holding the other. “So now we’ll do one round with me leading and then you’ll lead the next one.” He nods at her and waits for her to begin dancing.

As Gina leads Ricky across the room, she looks over to catch him looking at his feet. “Ricky.” she calls, “Don’t focus on your feet. You’ll learn better if you just move with the music.” He moves his eyes from his feet and focuses on her eyebrows, not having the courage to look her in the eye. 

A few minutes later, the song is on its last notes. Once it’s over, Gina withdraws from Ricky and remarks, “Wow. You’re pretty good. Uh, let’s take a break.” The song begins to play from the speakers again and Gina goes to pause the music. After doing so, she walks over to her bag and pulls out her water bottle, taking a sip.

Ricky walks over to his own bag and pulls out his water bottle, then sits on the bench and takes a look over at Gina. She’s reading a text from Ashlyn. He watches as she giggles for a moment, shakes her head and types a response. Three texts later, she’s getting up from her seat and looking over at Ricky to say, “Okay, you ready?” 

They assume their previous positions and Ricky begins leading Gina this time. As Gina’s holding one of Ricky’s hands in hers, she gives it a squeeze, as if encouraging him. They move around the studio to the music, while Ricky keeps his eyes locked on Gina’s, regaining his confidence. Although he had given up pursuing Gina for her benefit, his feelings for her never left and looking in her eyes for the first time in 5 months, he remembers why. 

Lucky for him, he thinks, Gina’s actually looking back at him this time. For the first time in a long time, Gina’s not scurrying away to EJ’s car or ignoring him to chat with Ashlyn. Staring into Gina’s eyes, along with the music playing in the background is enough to send his heart haywire. 

Gina’s mind is on the same wavelength as Ricky’s heart, it’s speeding so fast she thinks it might shut down.

Her feelings for Ricky had never left. Waltzing with him alone and catching him staring at her like _that_ is just making them grow stronger. After he had stopped trying to get Gina to talk to him, she realized just how much she missed him.

Nate was the perfect boyfriend on paper, Gina had no doubt about it. But she never felt like she could be 100% herself with him. In the few conversations Ricky and Gina had in the beginning, they had already confided in each other about their home life and their insecurities. It wasn’t like that with Nate.

As Gina’s thoughts are going out of control, Ricky takes a risk and spins her. It causes Gina’s breath to falter, the spin taking her by surprise. When he spins her back into his arms, she notices how much closer they were than before. Their closeness just makes her heart catch up with her head, it begins racing like crazy, like it might just burst out of her body.

Ricky resumes looking down at Gina, his eyes catching sight of her lips. He notices the way her lip gloss makes her lips look so shiny and inviting. He wonders what flavor her lip gloss is as his eyes flicker up to her eyes and back to her lips.

Then, Ricky does something stupid.

He adjusts his arms on her body and then begins to lean in closer and closer to her lips. The proximity causes Gina’s breath to shake as she raises her head to make up for the short distance. 

Once their lips are a few centimeters apart, the music stops. 

The sudden stop makes Gina shake out of the trance Ricky had put her in and she jumps out of his arms. “Uh, sorry. That was….” she trails off, running to her phone, unplugging it and throwing it in her bag. “You, uh, you were great. Tell Miss Jenn I wasn’t feeling well. I have to...I have to go.”

Ricky watches as she disappears out of the studio doors. By the time he comes to his senses, Gina’s already long gone. Her perfume lingering is the only proof that she had been in the room. Ricky bolts over to open the doors and call out into the hallway.

“Gina!”


End file.
